Jobseekers, Beware…Telephone Interaction Is A Mini-Interview

I have a coaching client who always wants to meet in person, rather than be coached by phone which is more typical (and actually more effective). Eventually we will need to coach by phone because I need to check his phone skills, and he says he’s willing, but I can tell he thinks I’m going to forget or somehow let him get away with no phone coaching. Well, I would be an irresponsible coach if I let him off without phone coaching. Telephone screening is a BIG part of recruiting. I am not just talking about actual interviews done by telephone (and there are many, including most first round screens), but even the shorter interactions by phone — the voicemail to follow-up, the call to schedule a meeting — are mini-interviews.

I covered phone skills in a recent GlassHammer column. I also shared my voicemail pet peeve in Ellen Simon’s AP article (which includes other handy voicemail tips). So I won’t give a laundry to-do list here. Just a warning/ plea/ insider tip from a recruiter who knows that bad phone skills are a candidate killer: telephone calls whatever the reason are mini-interviews. Treat them with care.